"I beg you, Lady of Troy, give me welcome and harbor here; the Goddess herself gave me to your son, and She herself could know no more of love than I have for him."
"But you have a husband already," said Priam hesitantly, "or did we hear falsely that you were wed to Menelaus of Sparta?"
It was Paris who replied, "She was given to him unlawfully; Menelaus was a usurper who took the lady for her lands; Sparta is Helen's own city by mother-right; her mother Leda held it, from her mother before her and her grandmother. Her father—"
"Is no father of mine," Helen interrupted. "My father was Zeus Thunderer, not that usurper who seized my mother's city by right of arms and wed an unwilling Queen."
Priam was still suspicious. "I know little of the Thunderer," he said. "He is not worshipped here in Troy. We do not serve the Olympians and we are not stealers of women—"
"My lord," Helen interrupted him, advancing to Priam and taking his hand with a gesture that seemed bold to Kassandra, "I beg you in the name of the Lady to extend me protection and the hospitality of Troy. For your son's sake, I have made myself an exile among the Akhaians who have conquered my home. Would you send me back to be outcast among them?"
Priam looked into the lovely eyes, and for the first time Kassandra saw the effect Helen always had upon strangers; there was a sort of melting in his face. He swallowed and looked up at her again.
"That seems reasonable," he said, but even in so short a sentence he had to breathe twice. "The hospitality of Troy has never been appealed to in vain. Surely we cannot return her to a husband who has taken her by force—"
Kassandra could keep silent no longer. She cried out, "Now there at least she lies; do you not remember how Odysseus told us that she herself chose Menelaus from more than two dozen suitors, and made the others swear to defend her chosen husband against anyone who refused to accept her choice?
"Father, have nothing to do with this woman! It is she who will bring ruin and disaster on our city and our world! What does she really want here?"
Helen's lovely mouth opened in surprise; she made a cry—like a stricken animal, thought Kassandra, hardening herself not to feel sorry for the Spartan Queen.
Paris looked at Kassandra with angry distaste.
"I have always known you were mad," he said. "My lady, I beg you to take no notice of her; she is my twin sister, whom the Gods have stricken with madness, and the deluded think her a prophetess. She speaks of nothing but ruin and death for Troy, and now she has chosen to think you the cause."
Helen's wide eyes rested on Kassandra.
"What a pity that one so beautiful should suffer madness."
"I pity her," said Paris, "but we need not listen to her ravings. Can you sing no other song, Kassandra? We have all heard this one before, and we are all weary of it."
Kassandra clenched her fists. "Father," she appealed,"see reason at least. Whether I am mad or not, what has that to do with what Paris has done? Paris cannot marry this woman; for she has a husband, whom dozens of witnesses saw her marry of her free will, and Paris has a wife. Or have you forgotten Oenone?"
"Who is Oenone?" asked Helen.
"She is no one who need ever trouble you, my beloved," Paris said, gazing into Helen's eyes. "She is a priestess of the local River God, Scamander, and I loved her for a time; but she went forever from my mind on the day I first looked on your face."
"She is the mother of your first-born son, Paris," Kassandra said. "Do you dare deny that?"
"I do deny it," said Paris. "The priestesses of Scamander take lovers where they choose; how do I know who fathered the child she bore? Why do you think I did not take her in marriage?"
"Wait," Hecuba said. "We accepted Oenone because she bore your child—"
Oenone was good enough for the wife of a shepherd, son of Agelaus, but not high-born enough for Priam's son, Kassandra thought. She said aloud, "If you abandon Oenone you are a fool and a villain. But whatever he may do, Father, I beg you to have nothing to do with this Spartan woman. For I can tell you now that it will bring down war at least on this city—"
"Father," Paris said, "will you listen to this madwoman rather than to your son? For I tell you now, if you refuse shelter to the wife the Gods have given to me, I shall go from Troy and never return—"
"No!" cried Hecuba in despair. "Don't say that, my son! I lost you once—"
Priam said, looking troubled, "I want no quarrel with Menelaus's brother. Hector," he appealed, "what say you?"
Hector stepped forward and looked into Helen's eyes; and Kassandra saw in dismay that he too succumbed to her beauty. Could no man look at Helen and retain his reason? Hector said, "Well, Father, it seems to me that you already have a quarrel with Agamemnon; have you forgotten he still holds Hesione? And we can always say that we hold her as hostage for Hesione's return. Are we nothing but a field from which these Akhaians steal women and cattle? I welcome you to Troy, Lady Helen—sister," he said, holding out his hand and enclosing her small fingers in his big ones, "and I pledge to you that an enemy to Helen of Sparta is an enemy to Hector of Troy and all his kin. Will that content you, my brother?"
"If you take her into this city it is you who are mad, my father!" Kassandra cried out. "Can you not even see the fire and death she brings in her train? Will you set all Troy ablaze because one man has no loyalty and desires another man's wife?" She had resolved to remain calm and sensible, but as she felt the dark waters rise to take her by the throat, she shrieked in dismay.
"No! No, I beg you, Father—"
Priam stepped back up into his chariot.
"I have tried to be patient with you, girl; but I have no more patience now. Get back to the Sunlord's house; he is the patron God of the demented - and pray to him for kindlier visions. As for me, let it never be said that Priam of Troy refused hospitality to a woman who came to him as supplicant."
"Oh, Gods," she cried, "can you not even see? Are you all besotted with this woman? Mother, can't you see what she has done to my father, my brothers—?"
Hector stepped forward and dragged Kassandra, protesting, out of the path of the chariots. "Don't stand here wailing," he said good-naturedly. "Calm yourself, bright-eyes; suppose it really does come to war with that Akhaian crew? Do you suppose we couldn't send them yelping back to those goat pastures they call their native land? War need not mean disaster to Troy, but to our enemies." His voice was compassionate. She flung her head back and gave a long wail of dismay and despair.
"Poor girl," Helen said, stepping toward her, "why have you chosen to hate me? You are the sister of my beloved; I am ready to love you as a sister."
Kassandra jerked away from Helen's outstretched hands; she felt that she would fall down and vomit if the woman actually touched her. She stared up at Priam in anguish.
"Oh, why can't you listen to me? Can't you see what this will mean? It is not man alone but the Gods who struggle here—and no man can live when there is war among the Immortals," she wailed. "And yet you say it is I who am mad! Your madness is worse than mine, I tell you!" She whirled and ran away into the palace.
Her heart was pounding as if she had run all the way from the Sunlord's house; she felt sick and shaking, and it seemed that she was running through flames that rose around her, engulfing all the palace in the smell of burning, the smoke… when hands touched her she shrieked in terror and tried to pull away, but the hands held her tight, and in a moment she was wrapped in loving arms. The darkness rolled away; there was no fire. She gazed in confusion into Andromache's dark eyes.